Proportional Representation to Add 50 More Members? ... Final Decision Ultimately 'Open Debate'

Jang Dong-hyuk "The expansion of the number of assembly members to 50 should be withdrawn"
Jeon Jae-su "Changed stance after joint approval"
Diverse opinions among 299 assembly members

The ruling and opposition parties are engaged in a tense standoff over the 'proposal to increase the number of lawmakers' passed by the Special Committee on Political Reform (Jeonggae Special Committee) subcommittee. While the ruling party maintains a firm stance that 'there will be no increase in the number of lawmakers,' the opposition party has criticized the ruling party for changing its position, noting that the ruling party had previously agreed to increase the number of lawmakers in the Special Committee on Political Reform. However, the proposal to increase the number of lawmakers is still a tentative example, and the final decision is expected to be made through a 'heated debate' at the plenary committee meeting scheduled for the 27th.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Ruling and Opposition Parties in Tense Standoff Over 'Increasing Number of Lawmakers'... Not a 'Confrontation'

Jeon Jae-su, the opposition party's Special Committee on Political Reform (Jeonggae Special Committee) secretary from the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 21st on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' that "The chairman of the Election System Advisory Committee directly under the Speaker of the National Assembly, which drafted this resolution, is also Lee Ju-young, a member of the People Power Party, and the co-chairman of the Political Relations Law subcommittee is also from the People Power Party. It was passed here," pointing out, "It is a strange situation where the People Power Party decided on it themselves and then overturned it themselves."

Earlier, both parties agreed in the Jeonggae Special Committee subcommittee to submit three election system reform proposals to the plenary committee: Plan 1 and Plan 2 to increase the number of lawmakers by 50, and Plan 3 to maintain the current number but switch to a large multi-member district system. However, the ruling party expressed opposition to the plan to increase the number of lawmakers by 50. Representative Jeon criticized why the ruling party changed its stance after agreeing to it in the subcommittee.

In response, the ruling party stated that what was approved in the subcommittee was not a final decision but a candidate proposal, and they oppose expanding the number of lawmakers. He said, "We did not set a party stance but selected about three proposals that could be discussed at the plenary committee and submitted them through the Jeonggae Special Committee. Among them, the proposals from the advisory committee under the Speaker of the National Assembly are the most objective and were therefore submitted as the main proposals." He also said that if the plan to increase the number of lawmakers by 50 is not withdrawn at the full meeting of the Jeonggae Special Committee on the 22nd, he would not attend the plenary committee.

Although there are differences in tone between the two parties, both are passive about increasing the number of lawmakers, suggesting that a compromise is not unlikely. Kim Ki-hyun, leader of the People Power Party, said at the highest council meeting the day before, "We will never increase the number of National Assembly members," and Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party, told reporters on the same day, "We must also be very cautious about increasing the number of lawmakers."

The ruling and opposition parties are sharply divided over the dismissal proposal of Minister Lee Sang-min, casting a red light on the passage of next year's budget. On the 12th, the National Assembly building was shrouded in silence. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Ultimately, the Conclusion Will Be Made in the 'Heated Debate'... 360 Seats vs. 200 Seats

This controversy arose after three proposals, including one to increase the number of lawmakers, were passed in the Jeonggae Special Committee subcommittee. The misunderstanding that these three proposals would be finalized through negotiations between the ruling and opposition parties led to this result. Jo Hae-jin, chairman of the Jeonggae Special Committee from the People Power Party, explained that the final decision on whether to increase the number of lawmakers will be made through a 'heated debate' involving all 299 members of the National Assembly.

On the same day, Jo said on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "The proposals from the Jeonggae Special Committee subcommittee are not about the two parties negotiating to decide the system," adding, "On the 27th, all 300 National Assembly members will gather for a heated debate, a free discussion with diverse opinions, to reach a consensus."

The reason for his explanation is that the three proposals passed in the subcommittee are not finalized plans but merely examples for the debate scheduled on the 27th. Jo said, "We need to outline which system is better and more reformative through the debate," and "For that debate, we asked both parties to submit about two effective example proposals useful for discussion, but currently, neither party has an official stance."

He continued, "However, since two example proposals are needed as topics for the debate, the ruling and opposition lawmakers in our subcommittee agreed to submit the three proposals made by the advisory committee under the Speaker of the National Assembly, which gathered experts, as topics for discussion."

During the heated debate, intense confrontations are expected between lawmakers proposing to increase the number of lawmakers and those advocating reduction. Jo said, "Among the election system reform bills submitted to our Jeonggae Special Committee, several Democratic Party lawmakers have proposed increasing the number of lawmakers, while the People Power Party, although without an official party stance, generally leans toward maintaining the current number of 300 or even reducing it to 270, as some members are preparing such proposals."

Looking at the proposals submitted so far, Democratic Party lawmakers Lee Tan-hee and Kim Young-bae have proposed increasing the number of lawmakers to 330, and Justice Party lawmaker Lee Eun-joo has proposed increasing it to 360. On the other hand, the People Power Party generally prefers maintaining the status quo, while lawmaker Cho Kyung-tae strongly advocates reducing the number of lawmakers to 200.